Earth scraper



H. RI'CKS,1R.

EARTH SCRAPER.

APPLICATION HLED MAY 12, 1920.

H. HICKS, JII.

EARTH SCRAPER.

APPLICATION FILED IIIAY I2, 1920.

Patented @et 3179 1922,

6 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOR w //u/W @argc/e.

ATToN H. RiCKS, JR.

EARTH SCRAPER.

APPLICATION TILT-:D MAY T2. 1920.

Patented; 00. 179 1922.,

6 SHEETS-SHEET 3 LAAS?,

INVENTOR HY@ UM //cxs; JA?.

ATT

H. RICKS, JR. EARTH SCRAPER. APPucATxoN FILED MAY12.1920.

Patented. Oct. il?, 1922..

6 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

INVENTOR ,eww fr/ 5;

ATTORN EY LASQDQQ H. RICKS, Jn. EARTH SCRAPEH. APPLICATION msn MAY12, 1920.

' Patented Oct. E17, 1922,

BSHEETS-SHEET 5.

INVENTOR .//xeaM/c/w, da

H. RICKS,`1R.

EARTH SCRAPER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY I2, 1920.

mmm (IGI, I?? wzl 6 SHEETS-SHEET 6 INVENTOR /f/meww @fc/ns, Je.

Patented @cih l?, T922.

NETE@ STATES TABZE@ PATENT @EETCE9 HYRUMIIRICKS, JR., OF REXBURG, IDAHO, ASSIGNOR TO ATLAS IMPLEMENT AND TL COMPANY, LIMITED, OF REXBURG, IDAHO.

EARTH SCRAPER.

Application filed 'May 12,

T o all w hom t may concern- Be it known that I, HYRUM Rions, J r., a citizen of the United States, and a. resident of the town of Rexburg, county of Madison, and the State of Idaho, have invented a certain new and useful Earth Scraper, of which the following, together with the accompanying drawings, constitutes a full, clear, and exact specification, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates and its principal objects are to provide a machine which shall: first, be so constructed that it shall be possible for one man and one team to accomplish as much or more work, with less fatigue, than can be accomplished by two men to an earth scraper,

and two teams when using the so-called Fresno scraper; second, make it possible for the pulling of the team to lift the scraper, when full of earth or other material, into a. posit-ion where it may be locked and held entii'ely clear of the surface of the ground, for where the earth is tobe deposited; third, make it possible to place and hold the scoop in various desirable positions, for levelling ground and for distributing earth or other material; fourth, be simple and durable in construction; fifth, be light running though capable of moving maximum loads; sixth, give the operator a flexible and complete control over the machine; and seventh,'be economical in cost of building and of operating.

With these objects in view, a framework is provided mounted on suitable wheels, carrying between the wheels an earth-cutting scoop of the usual Fresno type. rThe scoop is vpreferably pivoted by means of trunnions, in such a manner that the center of gravity thereof whenilled with earth, will be located 4within the circumference of the carrying wheels at all times, so that the weight of the scoop and its contents will be close to the axis of the carrying wheels. rlhe machine, further, is so constructed, that the scoop when filled with earth, may be raised off the ground by means of a series of levers actuated by the pulling force of the team, and be carried on the supporting wheels, instead of being dragged along the wheeling along to the point` 1920. Serial No. 380,935.

ground and thus wasting the greater part of the energy of the horses. The scoop is preferably so arranged that it may be dumped by means of a foot lever, located within easy reach of the operators seat, though a hand lever mightl be used if so desired. In ordinary scraping, the scoop is rigidly held and may be carried forward in the digging position in much the same manner as any ordinary scraper, but by pressing the foot lever already mentioned, a pa-wl which normally holds the scoop in the digging position, may be released and the scoop, by the forward movement of the machine, be caused to turn completely over, dumping the contents wherever desired. The scoop is then automatically tipped into the normal digging position, and is automatically caught by the pawlv and held until again released by the foot lever.

For levelling or distributing, the scoop may be raised off' the ground by a lever, and by releasing the above mentioned pawl, the scoop may be allowed to swing freely on its trunnions. A second lever, provided with a reaclbbar having a notch near its end, may be pivoted in a suitable stand and be adapted to be controlled by the foot 0f ythe operator, for the purpose of holding the scoop in any one of a number of possible positions in which the scraper lip can be used for levelling ground, or for properly distributing the contents of the scraper.

The purpose in this machine, is to cover every use to which an earth scraper is adaptable and to provide the various adjustments and combinations necessary to bring about a convenient and flexible order of operations, so that the user may obtain all the advantages which the machine is capable of producing, in a convenient, efficient and economical manner. rlhis means that the operations to be performed in using the various parts of the machine, under practical working conditions, must not be too numerous nor too diflicult of access from the operators seat, for otherwise, many desirable and possible adaptations of the machine would never be made use of.

The features of this invention on which protection is desired, are collectively grouped in the claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1, represents a side elevation of the scraper with the scoop in the digglng posltion Fig. 2, a longitudinal vertical center section showing the scoo`p in the so-called riding position;

Fig. 3, a plan View;

Fig. 4, a front elevation;

Fig. 5,`a side elevation embodying a modlfied construction of certain parts; and

Fig. 6, a plan embodying the modified construction.

Referring to the drawin s, 2O represents a scoop, preferably made 0 steel plates and provided with the trunnions 21 forming pivots which have their bearings in the lower extremities of lifting arms 23. The upper ends of lifting arms 23 are pivoted to the lifting yoke 24 by means of pins 25. The lifting yoke 24 is journaled on a shaft 26 carried on the main frame 27 in bearings 28, and furthermore has the downwardly extending arms 29, to the lower ends of which are pivoted the rear extremities of the draft arms 30 by means of pins 31. The lifting yoke preferably has the arms 24 made integral with the arms 29 and with the top bar 32. Pivoted on the pins 25 are the two branches 33 of the controlling yoke 34, the controlling yoke in turn being pivoted to the controllinglever 35 by means of the pin 36. The controlling lever 35 has its lower end pivoted at 37 in the lower part 38 of the quadrant 39, notches 40 and 41 being provided in the quadrant and adapted to be engaged by the pawl 42 controlled by the grip 43 pivoted on the lever 35. rlhe scoop 20 may be provided with the rea-r bracket angles 44 in the upper portions of which may be located the rigidly held pin 45. A pawl 46 adapted to engage the pin 45 may be pivoted on the shaf-t 26 and the pawl may be controlled through a foot lever 47 by means of the connecting link 48. The main frame of the machine may consist of the outer side members 50 and the inner side members 51, these members being connected by the front cross piece 52 and the rear foot board 53. The seat 54, carried by the spring support 55 may be mounted on the foot board as shown in Fig. 1 The main frame may be carried on the wheels 56 mounted on the shafts 57, the latter being journaled in thebearings 58 which are fastened to the under sideI of the frame members 50 and 51. Guard bars 59 are fastened to the inside of the members 50. Arms 23 and 29 are movably held between the guard bars 59 and the side members 50 and are steadiedA thereby. Back of the wheels 56 is a movable brake shaft 60 carried in the bearings 61 and having the crank arms 62 to which are pivoted the brake shoes 63. A foot lever 64 may extend outwardly from the brake shaft 60 and be provided with a treadle 65 within convenient reach of the operator when occupying the seat 54.

The draft arms 30 may pass through the hangers 108 and bear against either the rollers 109 or.110 (Figs. 1 and 2) depending on whether the front part of the main frame tends to rise or fall. Furthermore, the draft arms 30 may be connected by a cross piece 67, the arms and cross piece formin' what may be termed a draft yoke. The front part of the draft yoke may be carried on the fork 68, in which is journaled the wheel 69. In the upper part of the fork 68 may be fastened the rear end of the tongue 70, and the brace 71 may extend from the tongue over the cross piece 67 and engage the king pin 72.

A second quadrant 73 may be mounted on the foot board 53, and at 74 may be pivoted the hand lever 75 which is adapted to be held in Various positions by means of the' notches shown which engage the the pawl 76 forming part of the lever mechanism. Pivoted to the lever 75 at 77 is a levelling reach bar consisting of the forwardly extending arm 78 and the rearwardly extending arm 79. The front extremity of the arm 78 is provided with a notch 80 and the hook 81. The hook 81 extends downwardly from the notch 8O to an extent greater than the edge 82, the purpose of which. will presently be made c ear.

The operating features of the scraper will now be described.

In digging, the scoop may be placed in the position indicated in Fig, 1 where its lipis shown below the surface of the ground at a suitable depth. In moving forward, the team or other motive power pulls on the draft yoke, the pull being transmitted to the arms 29 of the lifting yoke and through the shaft 26 to the main frame of the machine. The method of holding the scoo 20 in the digging position is indicated in ig. 1, and consists in causing the lifting arms 23, to which the scoop is ivoted, to/ bear against rollers 83 4 journald on pins 84 which extend through the guard bars 59, each roller serving as a variable fulcrum. Thus, when the machine moves forward in the direction of the arrow 85 (Fig. l), the thrust of the earth against which the scoop is moving, is brought to bearagainst the rollers 83, consequently tending to pull the upper end of each of theJ lifting arms 23 in the direction of the arrow 86. A portion of this pull is transmitted throughthe .controlling yoke 34 and is resisted by the lever 35 locked in the quadrant 39. Another portion of the pull in the direction of the arrow 86, may be resisted by they lifting yoke and be transmitted thereby to the arms 30 of the draft yoke andconsequently be counteracted by the pull of the motive power.

When the scoop is filled to the proper degree, the pawl 42 of the lever 35 may be released by the operator grasping the movable grip 43 which allows the further pull of the motive power to move the arms 29 in the direction of the arrow 87. This causes the upper ends of the arms 24 to move in the direction of the arrow 88 and to carry along the lifting arms 23. The lifting arms 23 are thereby caused to rise and at the same time to move backwardly on the rollers 83, the extreme position of the parts being shown in Fig. 2. In this position the pawl 42 of the lever 35 snaps into the rearward notch 41 of the quadrant 39, the scoop 20 at the same time, being tilted back and held as shown in Fig. 2, so that the contents may be wheeled to any suitable point for discharge. The dumping of the scoop from the dig ing position, is also effected by the medhanism just described; in this case, when the pawl 46 is released from the pin 45, the forward pull on the machine causes the scoop to be turned over through contact with the ground at the point 91 (Fig. 1). The scoop revolves around the trunnion pins 21 and is caused to roll over through the full revolution, by means of the shoes 92 coming in contact with the surface of the ground. When the scoop has made its full revolution, the pin 45 strikes the inclined surface 92 of the pawl 46, pushing the pawl back in order to pass, and then striking the protruding jaw 93 (Figs. 1 and 2), thereby stopping the movement of the scoop and giving the spring 49 opportunity to force the pawl 46 forward into engagement with the pin 45, thus again locking the scoop in the normal digging position.

In using this machine for levelling, the reachbar 78 is dropped into any suitable position by means of the lever 75, where it will engage the upper .edge of the scoop 20 in the manner illustrated in Fig. 2. The levelling positions of the scoopv may be` varied between the limits shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 and the exact position mayl be controlled b means of the hand lever 75 and the reac -bar 78. The reach-bar .may be moved by means of the treadle 94, actuated by the foot of the operator. To obtain the levelling positions of the scoop, it is first elevated to the uppermost position by means` scoop to swing freely about the pivots 21 until the lip 91 touches the ground, when the scoop begins to turn over so that the shoes 92 will contact the ground and continue the turning of the scoop until it is overbalanced, and carried by gravity, back to normal riding position.

Instead of actuating the lifting yoke by means of the draft arms 30 as already explained, the draft yoke may be arranged as shown in Fig. 5, where the lifting yoke consists simply of the arms 96 with the rigid top bar 97, the lifting yoke being pivoted at 98 to a connecting member 99, which in turn is pivoted at 100toadraft member 101. The draft member may be pivoted in brackets 102 which are fastened to the main frame of the machine. An eyelet 103 may be fastened to the lower end of the draft member and the usual double tree, or other suitable device, (not shown), may be fastened in the eyelet by means of a suitable clevis and pin (not shown). In using this modified construction for transmitting the pull of the motive power to the lifting yoke, the action on the scoop is exactly similar to that already described. It may be desirable to place a caster wheel at each rear corner of the machine as shown at 104 (Figs. 5 and 6), each of the said caster wheels being supported in a fork 105 which is journaled in a bearing 106 fastened to the frame of the machine by means of the bolts 107.

In many cases the pulling force on the draft yoke necessary to move the machine along is less than the pulling force on the same yoke necessary to lift the loaded scoop, so it becomes imperative to add resistance to the forward movement of the main frame;

in the present instance this is accomplished by the brake mechanism already described.

While a fundamentally satisfactory embodiment of this invention has been described and illustrated, all the details thereof are not necessarily in the preferred form.

Vhat I claim is:

1. An. earth scraping device including a main frame, a scoop mounted upon the frame and having digging and carrying positions, draft means connected with the device, and means for imparting a continuous rising movement to the scoop from its digging position to its carrying position, when a pulling force is applied to the draft means.

2. An earth scraping device including a main frame, a lifting yoke mounted upon the main frame, a scoop connected with the lifting yoke, and draft means connected with the scoop and adapted to lift the said scoop when a pulling force is applied to the said draft means.

3. An earth scraping device including a main frame, a lifting yoke mounted upon the main frame, lifting arms connected to the lifting yoke, a scoop connected to the lifting arms, and draft means connected with the yoke and adapted to raise the scoop when a pulling force is applied to the draft means.

4. A11 earth scraping device including a main frame, a lifting yoke mounted upon the main frame, lifting arms connected to the lifting yoke, a scoop connected to the lifting arms, dra-ft means connected with the scoop and adapted to raise the same, and means for releasably holding the scoop in raised and lowered positions.

5. An earth scraping device includingT a main frame, a lifting yoke mounted upon the main frame, lifting arms connected to the lifting yoke, a scoop pivoted to the lifting arms, draft means connected with the scoop and adapted to raise the same, means for releasably holding the scoop in raised and lowered positions, and means for holding the scoop in an adjusted position upon its pivots.

6. An earth scraping device including a main frame, a lifting yoke mounted upon the mainframe, lifting arms connected to the lifting yoke, a scoop pivoted to the lifting arms. draft means connected with the scoop and adapted to raise the same, means for releasably holding the scoop in raised and lowered positions, means for holding the scoop in an adjusted position upon its pivots, and means for holding the scoop in a scraping position.

'7. An earth scraper including a supported main frame, a lifting yoke pivoted on the said main frame, the said yoke consisting of an upper portion and downwardly extending lever arms, lifting arms pivoted to the said upper portion, a scoop pivoted to the said lifting arms, a draft yoke pivoted to the said downwardly extending lever arms, and .means for releasably holding the said arms in an elevated position.

8. In an earth scraper, the combination with a supported main frame, of a lifting yoke pivoted to the said main frame, the said lifting yoke consisting of a main portion extending upwardly from the said pivot, lever arms extending downwardly from the said pivot, lifting arms pivoted to the upper part of the said main portion, a scoop pivoted to the said lifting arms, and a draft yoke pivoted to the said downwardly extending lever arms, for the purpose of lifting the said scoop when a pulling force is applied to the said draft yoke.

9. The combination with a supported main frame, of a lifting yoke pivoted on the said main frame, the said lifting yoke consisting of an upwardly extending yoke portion and downwardly extending lever arms, a draft yoke pivoted to the said downwardly extending lever arms, lifting arms pivoted to the said lifting yoke, roller guides adapted to limit the movement of the said lifting arms, a scoop pivoted to the said lifting arms, a suitably disposed pawl for holding the said scoop in the digging position, means for moving the said lifting yoke in such a manner that the said scoop may be elevated while held by the said pawl, means for holding the said lifting yoke. in the position where the said scoop is elevated, and means for releasing the said pawl from the said scoop. y

l0. A'main frame, wheels for supporting the said frame, a movable lifting yoke mounted on the said frame, lifting arms actuated by said lifting yoke, a scoop carried by the said lifting arms, guide rollers against which the said lifting arms are adapted to bear when the said scoop is moving forwardly, a draft yoke connected to the said lifting yoke, the` said draft yoke being adapted to move forwardly, .thereby causing the said lifting yoke to elevate the said scoop.

l1. A main frame, a lifting yoke pivoted on the said frame, a draft yoke pivoted to the said lifting yoke, lifting arms adapted to be actuated by the said lifting yoke, a scoop pivoted to the said lifting arms, and guide rollers adapted to form a rolling support for the said lifting arms as they move from one position to another position.

l2. A main frame having wheels, a lifting yoke journaled on the said main frame, the said lifting yoke having an upwardly extending portion and downwardly extending arms, lifting arms pivoted to the said upwardly extending portion, a scoop pivoted to the lower ends of the said lifting arms and adapted to have a digging position and a riding position, a. draft yoke pivoted to the downwardly extending arms, means for holding the said lifting yoke in a locked position when the scoop is in the digging position, means for releasing the said lock at the will of the operator thereby allowing a pulling force on the said draft yoke to elevate tie said scoop, means for releasably holding the said scoop in an elevated position, and means for releasing the said scoop.

13. An earth scraping device including a main frame, a lifting yoke supported on the main frame, lifting arms extending from the lifting yoke, a scoop pivoted at the lower ends of the lifting arms, a draft yoke attached to the lifting yoke and means for locking the wheels when the scraper is moving forwardly, in o'rder to cause a pulling force on the said draft yoke to elevate the said scoop.

14. In a wheeled scraper, thelcombination with a main frame, of a shaft extending laterally across Athe said frame, a lifting yoke mounted on the said shaft as a'fulcrum, a draft yoke connected to the lower part of the said lifting yoke, lifting arms having upper ends pivoted to the upper part of the said lifting yoke, a scooppivoted to the lower ends of the said lifting arms, means for holding said scoop in a digging position, means for releasing the said scoop from the digging position, and means for causing the lifting yoke to elevate the lifting arms by means of the pullin Vforce required to move the scraper forwar 15. In a scraper having wheels, the combination with a main frame, of a lifting yoke pivotally mounted thereon, a draft member`adapted to transmit a pulling force to the said lifting yoke, lifting arms attached to the said lifting yoke, a scoop attached to the said lifting arms, and means for causing a pulling force applied to the said draft member to elevate the said scoop.

16. An earth scraper including a frame, a lifting member mounted on said frame, a digging member suspended from the said lifting member, a draft member for causing the lifting member to elevate the said digging member, and means for retarding the forward movement of the said frame When the said digging member is in the digging position.

17. In an earth scraper, a movable scoop adapted to have a digging position, levelling positions and a riding position, means for supporting the said scoop in the positions named, a draft member to which a pulling force may be applied, a lifting yoke attached to the said draft member, and means for transmitting motion from the said lifting yoke to the said scoop.

18. In a scraper, the combination with a digging scoop, of lifting arms pivoted thereto, a member adapted to elevate the said lifting arms, rollers adapted to bear against the said lifting arms and to act as floating fulcrums therefor, a draft yoke attached to the said elevating member and means for applying a pulling force to thevsaid draft oke.

19. In an earth scraper, a main frame comprising outer side members, inner side members, a cross-piece joining one end of each of the outer and inner side members, a foot-board joining the other end of each of the said members, rotatable wheels for supporting the said main frame, the said wheels belng located between the said outer and inner side members: a lifting yoke journaled on the said main frame, the said lifting yoke comprisingarms extending downwardly from the journals thereof, arms ex* tending upwardly therefrom, an integral top piece joining the said upwardly extending arms; lifting arms connected to the said lifting yoke, a scoop revolubly supported by the said lifting arms, means for holding the said scoop in pre-determined positions; means for dumping the saidv scoop, means for actuating the said'lifting yoke, and a source of power for moving the said scraper forward.

In testimony whereof I sign my name hereto.

HYRUM nicks, JR. 

